The Matrix Scenes
by Gen. Kavik
Summary: InuMatrix Crossover... kind of. Adapted from scenes i had written for a movie. That movie was never filmed and these scenes are all that i have left. Rated for language. More informative Summary inside.
1. Scene 1

**A/N: **A while ago, my friends and I were working on an Inu-Yasha type movie. These following chapters are adapted from several scenes I had written in which an OC (Kuro, a vampire demon with a sister and married to Naraku) keeps showing up in the Matrix as Neo. The plot of the actual movie is irrelevant for these scenes. They were designed to be able to slide in and out of any story as the need arose.

As I already said, Kuro is an OC, vampire demon married to Naraku. Also In the "non-Matrix-world," the film is being filmed and directed by my character, The Producer.

Not much else to say, so on with the show.

**Matrix Scene 1:**

Kuro opened her eyes slowly. Her head hurt and she didn't quite know why. She shook her head and looked around. When her vision finally unblurred, she saw that she was in a rather nice looking study sitting in a rather nice leather chair.

"Where the hell am I?" she muttered.

She looked around and saw what appeared to be the producer, Inu-Yasha and Kegome. They were sitting and standing across from her with a nice coffee table between them. They are all in nice black suits. The producer had his same black hat on, but it had duct tape over it that had "Morpheus" written on it. Looking at her own body, Kuro saw that she too was in a black suit.

"You are in the Matrix," the producer said.

Kuro gave him a look of confusion. "The what-rix?"

"It is all round you," the producer continued.

"Okay," Kuro said slowly. "But what is it?

Inu-Yasha cut in. "It is the clothes you are wearing. The chair you are in. The food you eat."

Kuro frowned in slight confusion. "So… the Matrix is matter?"

"Yes," Kegome said. "The Matrix is what matters."

"No," Kuro said. "I mean matter." Blank stares. "As in has mass and takes up space?"

"No," the Producer said. "The Matrix is not matter."

"Then it isn't real," Kuro concluded.

"No," Kegome said.

"And yes" Inu-Yasha added.

"Wait," Kuro said, holding up her hands. "It's real… but it isn't real."

"That is correct," the Producer said.

"So…" she looks around and sees a glass of water on the table. She reaches down and picks it up. "This cup is real."

"Correct," Inu-Yasha said.

"But it isn't real," Kuro continued.

"Correct," Kegome said.

"So that would mean that…" Kuro trailed off as she set the glass down. "Wait. Is this a dream?"

Yes."

"And no."

"Damn it!" Kuro shouted. "Stop talking in riddle and tell me what the hell the Matrix is."

"No one can be told what the Matrix is," the producer said in an even, emotionless tone.

"Then what have you been trying to do for the last five minutes?" Kuro demanded.

"We have been trying to make you understand," Inu-Yasha said.

"Understand what exactly?"

"What the Matrix is," Kegome said.

Kuro's face turned red with anger. "But you just said, not even thirty seconds ago, that–"

"Neo," the producer said, cutting her off.

"Neo?" Kuro asked.

"You are the One," the producer announced.

"The One?" Kuro asked.

"The One," Inu-Yasha said.

"The One," Kegome added.

"Fantastic," Kuro said. "And who is the One?"

"You are, Neo," the Producer said.

"I got that part," Kuro said, gritting her teeth. "And the name's Kuro. But what is the One?"

"The One is you," Inu-Yasha said.

"But what do I _do_ as the one?" Kuro asked.

"You be the One," Kegome said.

"And how exactly do I 'be the One?'" she asked.

"First," the producer said, "you must accept the fact that you are the One, Neo."

"It's Kuro. And I _have_ accepted it."

The producer smiled. "No you must--"

Before he can go any further, the door bursts open and Naraku comes into the room in a not-so-black suit. He and Kuro lock eyes.

Kuro frowned in confusion. "Honey? What are you doing here?

"Crap," Inu-Yasha said. "Agent."

"Hello, Mr. Anderson," Naraku said, advancing on Kuro.

"What the Fuck is going on here?" Kuro shouted.

The producer turned to Kegome. "Get Neo out of here. We'll hold him off.

Kuro just blinked. "Wait… What?"

Kegome grabs Kuro's arm and begins to pull her away. "Come on."

As they leave the room, there is a flash. Kuro is on her back, looking up at the night sky.

There you have it. The first scene. If it doesn't make much sense, don't worry. It doesn't matter. Please review.


	2. Scene 2

Matrix Scene 2: 

"Ow! My head."

Kuro was on her back in the middle of an alley. Looking up, she saw Kegome's face. Kuro closed her eyes and rolled over with a groan.

"I'm sorry about that," Kegome said, helping Kuro up. I had to push you out of a window and hide you here. You were passed out there for a moment."

"Where am I?" Kuro asked.

"You are in the Matrix."

"Don't start that shit again," Kuro barked.

"Are you alright, Neo?" Kegome asked.

"I'm fine," Kuro said. "And I told you my name is Kuro."

"Neo!"

Kuro jumped and turned around. The producer and Inu-Yasha had materialized right behind her with out her knowing.

"Are you okay?" the producer asked.

"It's Kuro and I'm fine."

"Come," Inu-Yasha said. "We must get you to the Oracle.

"To who?"

"The Oracle," Kegome said. "She is a very wise program and-"

"Hold on," Kuro said, holding up her hands. "Program?"

"Yes," the producer said. "Programs are what makes the Matrix function."

"You know what?" Kuro said. "I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the fuck the Matrix is, and why my husband was trying to kill me.

"The Matrix is all around you," the producer said.

"It is the clothes on you back. The chair—"

"Okay," Kuro said. "Fuck it. What about my husband?"

The Agents," the producer explained, "are agents of the machines."

"Machines?"

"They wish to destroy all of humanity," Inu-Yasha explained.

"Wait," Kuro said. "All of humanity?"

"It's because we denied them entrance into the UN when they gained artificial intelligence," Kegome added.

"Artificial intelligence?"

"Neo," the producer said. "If you keep repeating everything we say, the Agents will catch up with us."

"Will you stop calling me Neo?" Kuro demanded.

"I don't get it," Kegome said. "How did they find us in the first place?"

Inu-Yasha was able to shed some light on the subject. "After doing a quick Quantum Analysis, I have concluded that the Agents have established a being, or possibly beings, within our ranks with which to relay valid and critical information to the main mind that governs the machines, thus allowing the Agent Programs to follow our ever move and take whatever respond they see fit to utilize that would result in the completion of their goal: our ultimate and total destruction as a human race.

"Of course," Kegome said.

"It makes perfect sense," the Producer added.

Kuro just stared at them. "…What the hell did he just say?"

"Come," Kegome said. "The Oracle awaits your arrival."

"And who the fuck is the Oracle?" Kuro asked.

"She will make all things clear," Inu-Yasha said.

"Damn it," Kuro muttered. "She better."

The three of them lead Kuro down the alley until they came to a street. At the side of the street was a long black limo. Kuro, being from feudal Japan, had no idea what it was.

"What the hell is that thing?"

"Get in," Inu-Yasha saidm ignoring the question.

"But what is it?" Kuro asked again.

"Just get in," Kegome said, opening the door.

Kuro took a step back. "Not until you tell me what the hell it is."

"Please, Neo," the producer said. "We don't have time for these games of yours."

"_My_ game?" Kuro shouted.

"Please Neo," Inu-Yasha said.

"Don't make us do something we will regret," Kegome added.

"What the hell could you three possibly do to me?"

Inu-Yasha gave a loud sigh. "A swift assault to your cranium with a two inch by four inch length of deceased timber will result in the instant paralysis-like state in which you will have lapsed into unconsciousness and become defenseless and unable to retaliate as we, by menial labor, hoist you into the back of the vehicle."

Kuro's face was blank. "What hell does--"

Her head erupted in pain when Kegome smacked her in the back of the head with a 2x4. Kuro fell, unconscious. When she opened here eyes again, she could see her sister.

"Okay," she murmured. "That was weird.


	3. Scene 3

Matrix Scene III 

Kuro shook her head as she realized she was being lead up stairs. The Matrix versions of Inu-Yasha, Kegome and producer were around her. Kuro swore to herself.

"Not again."

"You're awake," the producer said. "Good."

"Can't have the Oracle talk to a body," Kegome added.

"So," Kuro said, trying to get some tiny little shred of information from these idiots around her. "What am I going to speak with the Oracle about?"

"It could be many things," Inu-Yasha said."

"But she will make everything clear," the producer said.

They lead Kuro into a small room, where she saw a door leading off in one direction. The producer pointed to it.

"Go through there," he said.

"Is this Oracle of yours behind there?" Kuro asked. There was no response. "Okay, fine. Whatever.

Kuro opened the door and walked through into a little dinning room There was a kitchen off in one corner and a table in the middle. At the table sat Kikio. There was a plate of cookies in front of her.

"Hello Neo," Kikio said.

"Kikio?" Kuro asked.

"I am the oracle," Kikio said.

"Wait one damn minute," Kuro said, placing a hand to her temple.

"Would you like a cookie?" Kikio asked.

"No," Kuro said, clenching her hands into fists. "I don't want a cookie.

"Don't worry about the vase," Kikio said.

"What vase?" Kuro looked around and her elbow smacked into a vase. It fell to the floor and crashed. Kuro took a step back. "How did you do that?"

"Don't worry about that," Kikio said. "What'll really get you later is whether you would have broken it or not if I hadn't said anything."

"Oh, I already know the answer to that," Kuro said. "If you keep evading my questions, I would have probably broken it over your skull."

"Sit down, Neo," Kikio said, motioning to a chair.

"Why does everybody keep calling me Neo?" Kuro asked, sitting down.

"You have questions," Kikio said.

"No shit," Kuro said. "What was your first clue?"

"Ask," Kikio said. "And I shall do my best to answer them."

"Okay," Kuro said. "What is the Matrix?"

The door opened and the producer stuck his head in. "The Matrix is all around you."

The producer pulls his head back and Inu-Yasha sticks his head through the door.

"It is the clothes you wear. The—"

Kuro slammed the door shut on Inu-Yasha's head. Then she returned to her seat.

"Okay," she said. "Let's try another one. Why am I here?"

Kegome sticks her head through the door.

"You are the One," she said.

Kuro slammed the door shut again and placed her chair against the doorknob.

"Here," Kikio said. "Let me see your hands."

"Why?"

"Just let me see."

After a moment or two of hesitation, Kuro extends her hand. Kikio looks into her palms for quite some time, running her fingers through the lines of Kuro's hands. Finally, she looked up.

"Nope," she said. "You're not the One."

Kuro frowned. "What do you mean, 'I'm not the one?'"

"Sorry, kiddo," Kikio said. "But I guess, it wasn't meant to be."

"How can you tell I'm not the one?" Kuro asked, examining her own palms.

Kikio smiled. "Would like a cookie?"

"If I'm not the One," Kuro said, ignoring the plate Kikio offered her, "Then why do I keep showing up here?"

The door knob began to rattle. The door opened a crack and the producer poked his head in.

"You are the One, Neo!" he shouted. "You are the One."

Kuro slammed the door shut. She heard the sound of furniture breaking and other sounds of crashing and destruction as the producer fell back into the room.

"If I'm not the One," Kuro asked, "What the hell am I supposed to do?"

"Go with Morpheus," Kikio said.

"Who?" Kuro asked.

"The man with the hat," Kikio said.

Kuro, who was leaning on the door by this point, looked at it and took a step back. It burst open and the producer burst in, sweating.

"He's found us," he said.

"Who?" Kuro asked before she could stop herself.

"The Agent," the producer said.

Naraku could be seen through the doorway. He smiled at Kuro.

"Why do you continue to resist us, Mr. Anderson?" Naraku said, reaching into his suit jacket.

He fired off a shot or two before Inu-Yasha and Kegome began to try to fight him off. They failed and were beat aside. The producer pushed Kuro towards the door and turned to fight Naraku. There fight was short. Naraku advanced on Kuro menacingly.

"Naraku, honey," Kuro said. "What the hell are you doing?"

Naraku punched Kuro in the chest, slamming her against a wall. When she looked up again, she was leaning against a tree. She looked around and saw Naraku sitting under a nearby tree. He was quietly eating a cookie. Enraged, Kuro picked up a rock and hurled it at Naraku's head. He looked up just in time to duck.

"What was that for?" he demanded.


	4. Scene 4

Matrix Scene IV 

Kuro opened her eyes and saw Inu-Yasha's face. Looking around, she could also see Kegome. All of them were standing in a big, empty room. There was no sign of the producer.

"What did you two talk about?" Kegome asked. "Did she make everything clear?"

"No," Kuro snapped. "If anything, I'm even more confused now."

Inu-Yasha gave a chuckle. "She'll do that to you."

"But you said she would make everything clear," Kuro said.

He smiled. "My expression of the fact that the option of her clearing things up as a possibility may have been presented to you in an inappropriate manner. The truthful meaning of my expression was that there was a chance, though slim, that she might clear everything up. But the majority of encounters with her often do result in the complete and total confusion of those participants that have engaged in communication with her."

Kuro blinked a few times. "When the hell did you grow a brain?"

"We must get you back or Morpheus's sacrifice was for nothing," Kegome said.

"Sacrifice?"

"While we were endeavoring to bring you to a safe place with which we could talk," Inu-Yasha began, "it appears that Morpheus has given his life for the opportunity that you will survive. His belief that you are the One is unsurpassed by any other impulse he may have. He will die to save you.

"But I'm _not_ the One," Kuro said.

"He thinks you are," Kegome said.

"Is he dead or what?" Kuro asked.

Inu-Yasha frowned. "Against any rational reasoning, no. Morpheus is still alive. But, more than likely, he is heavily guarded and will be next to impossible to rescue."

"So, we just going to leave him there?" Kuro asked.

"We have no choice," Inu-Yasha said.

"Wait," Kegome said. "Neo is right."

"He is" Inu-Yasha asked.

"It's Kuro! And I'm a she!"

"Of course he is," Inu-Yasha said. "If we work together, we can save Morpheus."

"Wait," Kuro said. "When did I say that?"

"You are brave to suggest this idea, Neo," Kegome said. "And it is the right course to take."

"Did anybody here me say, 'Get killed trying to save some dumb-fuck?'" Kuro shouted.

"As the individual who spoke of the idea," Inu-Yasha said "I feel it is right that you, Neo, should lead the strike team into the fifty story building surrounded by any number of armed military personnel in an attempt to reach the forty-third floor and save Morpheus."

"But I don't want to save the guy!" Kuro shouted. "Let him die!"

A phone that wasn't there before that was sitting on a table that wasn't there before began to ring. Kuro picked it up, absent-mindedly and placed it to her head.

"Hello?"

There was a flash and Kuro was standing in the forest, holding a ball to her ear. In front of her was Inu-Yasha, eyes wide and expecting. Kuro looked from his face to the ball and back again. Kuro threw the ball and Inu-Yasha ran after it shouting, "Ball! Ball! Ball!"

Kuro sighed. "I think I like the smart one better."


	5. Scene 5

Matrix Scene V 

"How do I get myself into these things?" Kuro muttered to herself.

She was standing in front of a large building with Kegome and Inu-Yasha. The building was impossibly tall and she could see thousands if not more rifles pointing from any given floor.

"Okay," Inu-Yasha said. "After several hours of careful analysis of the architectural structural plans of the building…

"Here we go again," Kuro muttered.

"I have determined that the most plausible tactic to gain access to the building would be to take the guise of ordinary internal maintenance engineers. Under this illusion, it will be possible for us to infiltrate the building, allowing us to divide and inspect each room on floor forty-three. We will have our portable communication devices with us. Upon the locating of Morpheus, the individual that finds our leader will then utilize the portable communicator to make contact with the other two members of the team. They will convey their location and the other two will advance on the specified location. We will then charge in and terminate any form of a defense. When the defensive wall is down, we will grab Morpheus and make a progressive advancement on the stair well. Moving in a single-file fashion, we will then proceed down until we reach ground level. Then we will make a rapid movement towards a possible exit and get an evacuation."

"No sweat," Kegome said.

"You understood that pile of horseshit?" Kuro asked.

"Of course, Neo" Kegome said. "As the One, you must have understood it, too."

Kuro slapped her forehead. "I told you, my name is Kuro and I'm not the One. The Oracle even said so."

"Okay," Inu-Yasha said. "Let us commence the assault for Morpheus."

"For Morpheus,' Kegome said.

The two of them were about to charge the building. Then an idea so brilliant came to Kuro that she felt it must have been transmitted to her. Which she wasn't above believing at this point.

"Wait," she said. "I have another idea." She cleared her throat and said in a loud tone, "What is the Matrix?"

The producer came out from behind a flagpole. He was tied to a chair and was gagged.

Through the gag, Kuro could hear him say, "The Matrix is all around you."

"Inu-Yasha, not missing his cue, said, "It is the clothes on your back. The chair you are in. The food you eat.

"See?" Kuro said, ripped the ropes that kept the producer tied down. "Here he is."

Inu-Yasha and Kegome stare in awe.

"Oh my God," Inu-Yasha said. "He is the One!"

"What?" Kuro asked, a great sense of foreboding rising in her.

"Only the One could have achieved such a task," Kegome said.

"I didn't do anything!" Kuro shouted.

"I knew you were the One," the producer said.

"But the Oracle said—"

"Exactly what you needed to hear," the producer said.

Kuro slapped her forehead again.

"Great," she said. "Fantastic. I'm the One. Morpheus is alive. The world is saved. Yay. Happy ending. Can I go home now?"

"You are home," Inu0Yasha said.

"But you aren't home," Kegome said.

"Son of a bitch!" Kuro shouted.


	6. Scene 6

Matrix Scene VI 

Kuro was standing in the middle of a room with the producer and Kegome. She could tell by the black suits they had on that she was back in the Matrix.

"What the hell?" she asked. "I thought I did my job the last time I was here."

"Your job isn't over until this war is over," the producer said.

Kuro frowned. "What war?"

"This isn't the time for games," Kegome said. "We must find the Key Maker."

"I know I'll regret this," Kuro said, "but who is the Key Maker?"

"He is the program that will get you to the Source."

"The Source?" Kuro asked.

"Once you reach the Source, the war will end," Kegome said.

"So when I reach the source," Kuro said, "I can finally go home? Great! Where's the Key Maker?"

"First," the producer said, "you must speak with Seraph."

"Who?"

"He is the program that is assigned to watch after the Oracle," Kegome said.

"Oh no," Kuro muttered. "Do I have to go see psycho-lady again?"

"Possibly," the producer said. "Seraph will be at his teashop in China Town."

"How do I get there?" Kuro asked.

"You are already there," Kegome said.

"No I'm not," Kuro said, looking round. "I'm standing in a room with you and—"

She closed her eyes as she sneezed, violently. She rubbed her eyes and when she opened them again, she was standing in front of an ornate building with "Seraph's Teashop. Welcome." in blue letters.

"Damn," Kuro muttered. "They're good."

Carefully, Kuro went up to the door and knocked. Then she pushed the door open and walked in. Inside were several tables. Across the room she saw Miroku sitting on a table, cross-legged.

"Miroku?"

He got up and began to walk towards Kuro, speaking.

"I know what you seek," he said. "I can take you to her." He stopped several feet from her. "But first, I must apologize."

That eminent sense of foreboding began to rise in Kuro again.

"For what?" she asked.

"For this."

With that, Miroku shot his fist out, trying to strike Kuro in the chest. She blocked the strike and the two of them began to fight. They exchanged blows for several minutes before Miroku put his hand up.

"Stop," he said. "Good."

"What the hell was that for?" Kuro asked.

"I had to make sure it was you," Miroku said.

"You couldn't have just asked?" Kuro asked.

"No," Miroku said plainly. "Because when one asks, they leave themselves open to deceit. Only when you fight someone do you truly know them."

Kuro was silent for a moment. "That doesn't seem like the best way to meet people."

"Come," Miroku said. "We must go."

He went to the door and closed it, locked it. When he opened it again, it led out into a small park. Kuro could see a park bench. She followed Miroku through the door and up to the bench. But when she got to it, she didn't see Kikio. It was Songo.

"I thought I was going to see the Oracle," Kuro said.

"I am the Oracle," Songo said.

"No," Kuro said. "Kikio is the Oracle."

"You must be confused by my new appearance," Songo said.

"No shit."

"I had to change form some time ago," Songo explained.

"Why?" Kuro asked. Before Songo could answer," Kuro held up a hand to stop her. "Wait. Scratch that. I don't really care. Where the hell's the Key Maker?"

"Have a seat," Songo said.

"If I'm getting this right," Kuro said, "Then you should already know if I'm going to sit or not, correct?"

"Wouldn't be much of an Oracle if I didn't."

"So how can it be my choice if do or not?" Kuro asked.

"Be cause you already made that choice."

"When?" Kuro demanded. "I don't remember ever thinking to myself, 'Hey. If I'm ever in a park when some creepy version of Songo asks me to sit, I think I will.'" With that, she sat down. "Where's the Key Maker?"

"A very dangerous program, called Merovingian is holding him," Songo said. "A Trafficker of Information. You must get him out."

Kuro let out a sigh. "And where do I find this Trafficker?"

Songo handed Kuro a piece of paper. "Be there at that exact time."

Miroku came up out from the shadows.

"We must go," he said.

Songo and Miroku left through the same door, leaving Kuro alone on the bench, thinking and looking at the paper. She looked up when she heard a noise. It was Naraku.

"At last I have you alone, Mr. Anderson," he said.

"Naraku," Kuro said desperately. "What the hell is going on? This is sixth time I've been here."

"This will be your last," Naraku said with an evil smile. "I have turned a great deal of others in the Matrix into copies of me. They will soon be here and we will kill you."

He ran at Kuro, planning to attack him. But Kuro dropped under the punch and delivered her own punch to Naraku's stomach. He fell sideways and she got him in a headlock. There was a flash and she was back in the forest, gripping Naraku in a headlock. She let go hurriedly.

"Oops," she said. "Sorry, dear."


	7. Scene 7

I would like to take this time to point out that I have NO FUCKING CLUE IN HELL HOW TO SPELL SOME OF THESE NAMES! Matrix Scene VII 

Kuro opened her eyes and saw that she was at a restaurant, a rather nice one at that. She was seated in front of a table with the producer, Kegome and Inu-Yasha. Across the table was Sessoumaru.

"You know why we are here?" the producer asked.

Sessoumaru smiled. "I am a trafficker of Information," he said in a French accent. "It is my job to know."

"What the hell is Sessoumaru doing here?"

"But I will not give him up," Sessoumaru said.

"Then we shall force you into giving him up," Inu-Yasha said.

"This is my world," Sessoumaru said. "You will not succeed."

"We'll see," Kegome said.

Sessoumaru laughed. "Oh, I'm sure you thing that because you have Neo with you and because you are under the delusion that he is the One, you think you will be able to get to the Key Maker. But that will not happen."

The Kuro stood up and leapt over the table. She grabbed Sessoumaru by the throat and began to beat the crap out of him. No one knew what to do. They just watched as Kuro broke the table over Sessoumaru's head.

"Shouldn't we be trying to stop him?" Kegome asked.

"I concur," Inu-Yasha added. "I am at a loss as to the purpose of this course of action.

"I'm sure he knows what he's doing," the producer said, calmly.

Several minutes later, they could hear Kuro shouting over the loud bone breaking.

"MY FUCKING NAME IS KURO! KURO YOU DUMB FUCK!"

"Okay! Okay!" Sessoumaru said. "I'll let you have him. Just make him stop!"

"I'M A SHE, STUPID! A SHE!"

"Neo," the producer said. "That's enough. We have what we came for."

Kuro was holding Sessoumaru over her head. "Fine," she muttered before slamming Sessoumaru down one more time.

Sessoumaru led the four of them through a series of halls and doors. After what seemed like hours, they came to a cell door. Sessoumaru opened the door. Inside, every spare inch of wall space was covered with keys. Sitting behind a key making machine was Koga.

"Wait," Kuro muttered. "They brought Koga into this?"

"Come," the producer said. "We must go."

"Yes," Koga said, getting up from the machine.

"So now we have the Key Maker," Kuro said. "Great. When do we reach this Source thing?"

"That is a journey you must make alone," Koga said.

"Fantastic. When do I leave?"

"You are eager to win this war," Koga said. "Good."

"War?" Kuro asked. "I don't give a fuck about your war. I want to end these dream sequences."

"We will leave immediately."


	8. Scene 8

Matrix Scene VIII 

Kuro was in a long hallway with thousands of doors and no end in sight. She was walking down the corridor with Koga and the producer.

"This way," Koga said.

"What's this way?" Kuro asked.

"The source," the producer said.

"And what, exactly am I supposed to do when I get there?"

"The prophecy does not say," the producer said.

"Wait a minute," Kuro said, stopping dead. "Prophecy? You mean I've been running all over this place doing errands for crazy people and fighting my husband because of some higher ups who have somehow managed to design our whole futures?"

"Yes," the producer said matter-of-factly. "The Oracle didn't tell you?"

"The thing about making my choices before I make them?"

"Yes."

Kuro thought for a moment.

"But, if she's a… program," Kuro began, "and she knows what we're going to do and not do, doesn't that mean the higher ups are machines that have managed to control our every move?"

The producer and Koga look at each. Then the producer smacked Kuro across the face.

"Don't be silly," he said.

Before Kuro could fly into rage, Koga announced that they were at their destination. They had paused at what looked like the end of the hallway, which ended in a large white door. Koga took a key from his pocket and was about to open the door when another door opened and Naraku stepped out.

"You will not escape me, Mr. Anderson," he said.

The producer ran up to Naraku and began to fight him. "Get to the source," he shouted. "I'll hold him off."

"Hurry," Koga said opening the door. "We must go."

Kuro was about to go when an idea came to her." "Wait a minute," she said. "If this Naraku is anything like my Naraku, then he won't like being kicked in the balls."

She ran up to Naraku and kicked him square in the nuts. Naraku fell over in pain.

"Let's go," Kuro said, grabbing the producer by the lapel.

They left the quivering form of Naraku and went into the room. As the door closed behind them, there was a flash and Kuro was back in the forest. She looked around and saw Naraku behind her. Reflexively, Kuro kicked him in the nuts again. He fell over in pain.

"What the hell's the matter with you?" Naraku said in a high-pitched voice.

"Oops," Kuro said, helping him up. "Sorry."


	9. Scene 9

Matrix Scene IX

Kuro was standing outside another door. She had a key in her hands and was thinking to herself.

"Who'll be in this room?" she asked herself out loud. "I haven't seen Shippo yet. Maybe it's him."

She unlocked the door and went through. Inside, she found herself in a room with TVs showing her image where the walls should be. And sitting in the middle of the room in a chair, dressed completely in white was none other than Jaktsu.

"Hello, neo," Jaktsu said.

"Jaktsu?" Kuro asked. "Who the hell are you supposed to be?"

"I am the Architect," Jaktsu said. "I created the Matrix. I've been waiting for you. You have many questions, but though the process has altered your consciousness you remain irrevocably human. Ergo, some of my answers you will understand and some you will not. Concordantly, while your first question may be the most pertinent, you may or may not realize it is also the most irrelevant."

Kuro just stared at him. "…Okay. I have no idea what the hell you just said, but maybe you can tell me why I'm here?"

"Your life is the sum of a remainder of an unbalanced equation inherit to the programming of the Matrix. You are the eventuality of an anomaly, which despite my sincerest efforts I have been unable to eliminate from what is otherwise a harmony of mathematical precision. While it remains a burden assiduously avoided, it is not unexpected and thus not beyond a measure of control which has lead you, inexorably, here."

"What the hell are you trying to say?" Kuro asked. "You didn't even answer my question, did you?"

"Quite right," Jaktsu said. "Interesting. That was quicker than the others."

Then the TVs started to speak.

"Others? How many? What others?"

"The Matrix," Jaktsu continued, "is older than you know. I prefer counting from the emergence of one integral anomaly to the next, in which case this is the sixth version."

"Five before me?" the TVs said. "He's lying. Bullshit."

"Okay, you know what?" Kuro said. "I don't care anymore. Why should I give a rat's ass about who knows or doesn't know what?"

"Precisely," Jaktsu said. "As you are undoubtedly gathering, the anomaly is systematic creating fluctuations in even the most simplistic equations."

"You can't control me!" the TVs shouted. "I'm gonna smash you to bits! I'm gonna fucking kill you! You can't make me do anything. You old white prick!"

"I DON'T CARE!" Kuro shouted.

"The first Matrix I designed was quite naturally perfect," Jaktsu continued, ignoring her outburst. "It was a work of art. Flawless, sublime. A triumph equaled only by its monumental failure. The inevitability of its doom is apparent to me now as a consequence of imperfection inherent in every human being. Thus, I redesigned it based on your history to more accurately reflect the varying grotesqueries of your nature. However, I was again frustrated by failure. I have since come to understand that the answer eluded me because it required a lesser mind. Or, perhaps, a mind less bound by the parameters of perfection. Thus, the answer was stumbled upon by another, an intuitive program initially created to investigate certain aspect of the human psyche. If I am the father of the Matrix, she would undoubtedly be its mother."

"Speak English!" Kuro shouted. "You're making less sense than the Oracle! In a nutshell, why am I here?"

"Please," Jaktsu said. "As I was saying, she stumbled upon a solution whereby nearly ninety-nine percent of all test subjects accepted the program as long as they were given a choice, even if they were only aware of the choice at a near unconscious level. While this answer functioned, it was obviously fundamentally flawed, thus creating the otherwise contradictory systematic anomaly that, if left unchecked, might threaten the system itself. Ergo, those that refused the program, while a minority, if unchecked would constitute an escalating probability of disaster."

"Okay," Kuro said. "Now take that long ass answer and put it in a nutshell, like I said before."

"You are here because Zion is about to be destroyed," Jaktsu said. "Its every living inhabitant terminated, its entire existence eradicated."

"Bullshit," the TVs said.

"What the hell is Zion?" Kuro asked.

"Denial," Jaktsu said, "is the most predictable of all human response. But rest assured, this will be the sixth time we have destroyed it. And we have become exceedingly efficient at it. The function of the One is now to return to the source, allowing a temporary dissemination of the code you carry reinserting the prime program. After which you will be required to select from the Matrix twenty-three individuals, sixteen female, seven male, to rebuild Zion. Failure to comply with this process will result in a cataclysmic system crash killing everyone connected to the Matrix which, coupled with the extermination of Zion, will ultimately result in the extinction of the entire human race."

Are you even listening to a single word I'm say?" Kuro asked.

"There are levels of survival we are prepared to accept," Jaktsu said. "However, the relevant issue is whether or not you are ready to accept the responsibility for the death of every human being in this world."

He tapped his pen and the mass of TVs switched to show different people.

"It is interesting reading your reactions," he said. "Your five predecessors were, by design, based on a similar predication. A contingent affirmation that was meant to create a profound attachment to the rest of your species, facilitating the function of the One. While others experienced this in a very general way, your experience is far more specific. Vis-à-vis, love."

He tapped the pen again and the TVs switch to show Kegome fighting a different Agent from Naraku.

"Kegome?" Kuro asked.

"Apropos," Jaktsu explain, "she entered the Matrix to save your life at the cost of her own."

Kuro clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. "Do I have to rip your voice box out and beat you to death with it or are you just going to tell me how to get out of here?"

"Which brings us at last to the moment of truth," Jaktsu said, "wherein the fundamental flaw is ultimately expressed and the anomaly reveals both beginning and end. There are two doors. The door to your right leads to the source and the salvation of Zion. The door on your left leads back to the Matrix, to her and to the end of your species. As you adequately put it, the problem is choice. But we already know what you're going to do, don't we?"

"I'll see you in hell," Kuro said as she walked towards the right door.

"Already I can see the chain reaction, the chemical precursors that signal the onset of an emotion designed specifically to overwhelm logic and reason. An emotion that is already blinding you from the simple and obvious truth: She is going to die and there is nothing you can do to stop it."

"I don't want to," Kuro said, opening the door. "I'll be going now."

She walked through the door and saw everyone she met in the Matrix laughing their heads off in a large room. Kuro looked at them in utter confusion.

"What the hell is going on here?" Kuro demanded.

The producer came up, barely able to stand because he was laughing so hard.

"We… We… We…" He couldn't get anymore out before falling over in a fit of laughter.

Kuro looked around the room and saw Shippo tied up and gagged under a nearby chair. She went over to him and ungagged him.

"I'm sorry," Shippo said. "I tried to stop them."

"Just tell me what happened?" Kuro said.

"Naraku saw a couple movies last month and decided to pull this stunt," Shippo said as Kuro untied him. "I said I was going to tell you, so they tied me up."

By now, the producer was under a little more control. He got up and went over to Kuro. "You should have seen your face when I smacked you."

At that, he fell over in another fit of laughter.

Kuro picked up the chair Shippo was under and ran at the producer.

"I'll show you my face!"

Twelve hours of extensive surgery later, they were all in a hospital room. Kikio was in a full body cast. Shippo sat next to the producer's bed. Kuro was next to Naraku.

"I told you it was a bad idea," Shippo said.

"Shut up," the producer said, feeling his neck brace with the hand that didn't have a chunk of wood sticking through it.

"That's it," Kuro said. "You are never going to the movies without me again."

"Why not?" Naraku asked. "I said I was sorry."

"We will discuss this more when your bones knit."

The End


End file.
